Last Minute Tips: Celebrating Halloween in your Senior Community

In my last post, I offered some ideas on how to celebrate Halloween with your aging loved one. However, I realize that many seniors are not able to be with their families or close friends on holidays like Halloween, so I wanted to help senior communities create their own Halloween traditions.

Here are my top 10 suggestions for fun ways senior communities can celebrate Halloween. Please share with us how your community is going to celebrate Halloween!

Have a decorating party. Provide materials like mini pumpkins, cobwebs, orange streamers and have everyone participate in making the place feel festive.

Trick or Treating in the community. Invite families and neighborhood kids to come trick or treating within the facility before they hit their neighborhoods. Each room or apartment can give away candy treats of their choice.

Have a pumpkin-carving event or contest. Everyone could have fun pulling the gook out of the inside, or to avoid a mess they could paint them instead.

Have a scary story night. Residents can get together and share their favorite scary Halloween stories from childhood.

Help kids in need celebrate Halloween. Put together treat bags for local foster kids or donate them to the kids in local homeless shelters.

Vintage scary movie nights. Host a old Halloween movie night in the facility or take residents to a local theater screening old scary movies.

Murder mystery themed party. Make it very simple, invite residents to get dressed up if they would like to and meet for a dinner followed by a murder mystery party. Have pre-written questions for each character and have those that need more help partner up.

Non-scary party option. For those that want to celebrate the holiday in a non-scary fashion, host a decades party. Each resident will have the option to dress as their favorite decade. You can provide the music, movies, and snacks that represent each decade.

Take a trip to your local museum or aquarium. Most have special Halloween exhibits and are handicap accessible. This also provides a fun, easy trip into the city.

Put on a community party. Partner with the local senior center or community center to to put on a Halloween party. The party can be anything from a simple potluck affair with bingo and dancing, to a elaborate party with carnival games, costume contests, and a haunted house.